EMS

EMS Landing Page

EMS Research Faculty











Tyrel Fisher, MD

Mary Knotts, MD

Daniel Spaite, MD
Virginia Piper Distinguished Chair of Emergency Medicine, Director, EMS Research Collaboration, Medical Director, Mesa Fire and Medical Department

The University of Arizona Department of Emergency Medicine (UA DEM) is pleased to offer subspecialty services in the area of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) as well as mass casualty/disaster preparedness and response.

Throughout its history, the UA DEM has been a leader in EMS internationally, nationally and at the local and state level. The physicians, nurses and paramedics of the UA DEM are proud to work with multiple, outstanding local EMS agencies, and to provide medical direction for the majority of the patients receiving medical care in southern Arizona. For example, DEM professor Terry Valenzuela, MD, MPH, and his staff provide medical direction for the Tucson Fire Department.

With the expertise of our faculty, we are able to offer other niche EMS faculty support in the areas of: Wilderness Medicine, HAZMAT, Tactical and Military Medicine, Pediatric EMS and student EMS.

The UA DEM and the Arizona Emergency Medicine Research Center (AEMRC) have been conducting EMS research for over 30 years. Through the leadership of DEM faculty: Harvey Meislin, MD, FACEP, FAAEM; Kurt Denninghoff, MD; Daniel W. Spaite, MD; Terence Valenzuela, MD, MPH; and Arthur B. Sanders, MD, MHA, the DEM continues to be a national leader in the areas of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, traumatic brain injury and stroke, toxicology, disaster preparedness and other critical emergency medicine research areas.

Resident Training:

The EMS Orientation begins during PGY1 with EM Resident attendance at a joint UA health care overview of regional EMS, Base Hospital and medical direction roles and responsibilities; standing orders, administrative orders and specialty hospital designation as it relates to destinations for EMS transports.

Emergency Medical Services Rotation for PGY2 resident physicians is a two-week clinical and didactic experience focusing on the administrative and clinical skills necessary to provide both offline and online EMS medical direction. Overview of regional communications processes, education needs, and practical application of research strategies is also included in this second year experience.

During the PGY3-4, the emergency residents will be encouraged to build upon the experience and knowledge gained during PGY1 and PGY2.

The UA DEM supports these EMS specialty services:

Disaster Preparedness and Response Services - Banner - University Medicine, the UA DEM and the Arizona Emergency Medicine Research Center (AEMRC) offer comprehensive mass casualty and disaster services at both University and South campus.

The Banner staff coordinates all preparedness and response activities at Banner - University Medical Center Tucson and South Campuses. As the only level I and level III trauma centers in southern Arizona, the University and South Campus hospitals stand ready to provide medical care for victims of a wide variety of mass casualty or disasters anywhere in southern Arizona or from an even broader international community should the need arise.

EMS Provider Continuing Medical Education and Other Educational Opportunities - The UA DEM through its Knowledge Transfer Collaborative offers a wide variety of educational opportunities in prehospital care, mass casualty and disaster preparedness and HAZMAT training.

Contact Us: Our dedicated faculty and staff offer a wide variety of EMS experience and expertise. Please don’t hesitate to contact us to learn more.